Data Mining the Deceased – a New Genealogy Documentary

Watch Data Mining the Deceased – a New Documentary about the LDS Church and Family History

While I was searching for genealogy-related items on Amazon in preparation for Amazon Prime Day 2018 (click HERE to see our current sales listings), I came upon an interesting item: a direct TV (via Amazon Prime) documentary entitled Data Mining the Deceased.

While the Amazon site is short on descriptive information and there is only one review posted, through some quick research I determined that the documentary was produced by Flame Media. Here is their description:

More than half of North Americans are fascinated by genealogy. Some gain a sense of identity by uncovering their ancestors, their culture, and their country of origin. Others find it disorienting when they discover that their history differs from what they have always believed. But there is another side to the rise in genealogy that goes beyond human interest. It is arguably the largest historical enterprise in the world, and one of the largest data mining operations, driven by big religion, big business and big technology. Data Mining the Deceased is a doc that takes a wry but accepting look at individual and industry stakes in the phenomenon of family history.

Shot in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Iceland, the divergent aims of the stakeholders become evident as the Mormons (who hold 33 times the number of records than the Library of Congress) claim they will create the genealogical record back to Adam and Eve. Steven Pinker and Alondra Nelson provide the counter balance to this scientific silliness, but no one underestimates the drive to know where we come from, or the ownership and privacy concerns about personal and DNA data in the international flow and aggregation of vital information about the living and the dead.

Have you view Data Mining the Deceased? I’d appreciate it you have an Amazon Prime membership, if you could click HERE and take a look. Report back in the comments section below AND please post a review at Amazon. I think it is important that as genealogists and family historians we monitor and evaluate how media is depicting our field. As seeks of truth about our own ancestors, we have a responsibility to help others see the truth about the genealogy industry.

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About the Author

Genealogy educator and author Thomas MacEntee has been researching his family history for more than 40 years and is the creator of Abundant Genealogy, Genealogy Bargains, DNA Bargains, The Genealogy Do-Over and numerous other web-based genealogy and family history properties.